Life Debt
by Wei Tzu
Summary: Labeled a fugitive and terrorist after the destruction of the BSL station, as well as Planet SR-388 and the X Parasites, Samus Aran is on the run. Still, the Bounty Hunter knows that she can't remain idle, that there will always be threats to the people. Perhaps a long forgotten debt to her family is her way back into being able to make a difference once again...


**Huh. Had expected something like this to have come up by now, since joining this site so many years ago. Still, not going to complain about being the first.**

* * *

As it was, the future looked rather bleak.

She and her AI partner, Adam, were wanted fugitives from the Galactic Federation, due to the BSL station that they'd originally been tasked with running investigations and damage control on being reduced to dust along with the planet it once orbited. This meant that Samus was unable to work as a GF Bounty Hunter as she had in the past, which deprived her of monetary income. This wasn't an issue at first, due to the simplistic lifestyle she led, but her financial coffers could only last so long, and the Federation had just recently put a lockout on her accounts.

"What options do we have, Adam?" Samus asked, not looking away from the data terminal she was desperately searching through to find any amount of money she could.

"We have limited fuel available. Enough for a one way trip to almost any location, and food shouldn't be an issue for you here, provided we stay for long." Adam was also looking through the galactic datanet, with similar results to the woman in charge. "Hold on, I think I found something…"

Samus turned so sharply her neck cracked from having been locked in place so long. She groaned for a moment before focusing her attention on the AI. "What do you have?"

"One moment, I need to verify this." Samus sighed with impatience at his answer. "This is unexpected. Were you aware that your family is owed a significant private debt?"

"No…" Samus answered, narrowing her eyes as she thought about this new information. "Who owes me?"

"The debt goes back to originating between one Dante Ritter and a Mary Arkham. Mary passed away with Dante still owing approximately $250,000 USD at the time. With interest and inflation factored in, provided you are able to collect this debt, you are due for a sum of approximately five hundred fifty million credits."

Samus felt her jaw start to drop, but caught herself before that could happen. "You're serious, Adam?" Before the AI could answer, she cut him off, waving her hand and saying, "Stupid question, you wouldn't joke about this. Where can I find the current Ritter?"

"The Ritter family was one that never left Earth. One moment please…" Samus took to tapping her fingers on the console she had been sitting in front of while she waited. "I found one Dante Ritter that resides in Capulet, a suburb of Philadelphia in the North American continent. I'll show you the address now."

After taking a look, and committing the location to memory, Samus began starting her ship and put in the coordinates that would take her to Earth.

* * *

A white haired man wearing a long red coat collapsed into his comfortable office chair, kicking his feet up on his desk while popping open a bottle of beer, lazily allowing the bottle cap to tumble to the floor. "Another easy job…" he said before taking his first swig. "Wish things would get a bit more interesting."

After finishing off his beer, the man picked up a gun magazine on his desk, inwardly boggling at how complex the new weapons of the day were compared to his old favorites. Ebony and Ivory were old guns, of that there was no doubt, and the only reason they still stood up to the demonic legions of hell was his heritage as a half-devil. Infernally powered bullets were perfectly capable of punching through modern shielding, as he had proven to the malicious denizens of Hell shortly after they tried adopting it in a bid to gain a foothold on Earth.

Paging through the magazine, he stopped at an article detailing new power suits that could generate weapons after downloading data for them. Again, his mind boggled at the sophistication of modern technology. Only once the phone grid had been disabled had he bothered to get a computer and set up email, which was swiftly brought to the galactic datanet once humanity was able to leave Earth.

Once he finished his magazine, and listened to a broadcast about some rogue bounty hunter who was reported to be wanted and highly dangerous, he reclined even further in his chair, rested his magazine on his face, and fell asleep to the tunes of the radio.

* * *

Samus dropped out of hyperspace at the edge of the Sol System, just outside of scanning range for any GF satellites and traffic control stations. "No turning back now," she muttered to herself. "How are we doing this, Adam?"

"Considering that this class of gunship was mass produced, I am able to mask our IFF signature with another one that should not raise any alarms on GF systems. However, your suit will likely have to stay on board, and I'll need to fabricate a new identity for you in order to get past security. Don't cause any trouble. Any objections, Lady?" All the while, he piloted the ship towards Earth, not once deviating from course so they could keep up the pretense of looking like they belonged, instead of being fugitives on the run.

Samus huffed with irritation at the news that her suit would have to be left behind. "All right. I'll get the suit under the floor plates while I'm out there. What's my new name going to be?"

Adam took a moment to respond. "Samantha Arkham. You're a freelance hunter/mercenary relatively new to the scene." The AI paused again for a few seconds before continuing, "Interesting. It looks like Dante Ritter is a veteran in the mercenary business."

"Something that gives a new hunter like me a perfect reason to seek him out," Samus said. "Always a good idea to ask for advice from an older, more experienced hunter when you're still learning the ropes." Granted, she may not have actually needed the advice, and she'd not been particularly inclined to actually follow along with the words she'd just spoken when she actually was new to bounty hunting and mercenary work. Still, having a cover story to go with her assumed identity would only make answering any questions that might be asked of her easier to handle, instead of having to make something up entirely on the spot.

"Indeed, Miss Arkham," her synthetic companion stated, fully agreeing with her assessment. "We have approximately thirty hours until we'll arrive over Earth, and if current aerospace traffic continues to hold, it should be thirty-six hours until we arrive." He ignores the second irritated huff from her in as many minutes. "I would recommend getting used to the new name, and even I'll start using it more often, to avoid a slip-up down the line. Get some rest while you can."

"I think I'd prefer you just call me Lady more often, in that case," the fugitive huntress stated, getting up from her pilot seat and heading back towards the small cabin allotted for sleeping quarters. "At least that way something will still feel somewhat how it used to be."

"Very well, Lady."

A moment later, the door to Samus' Captain's Quarters sealed behind her, and silence overtook the ship as it continued its course for Earth.

* * *

 **A/N: As of right now, I don't have any actual plans for a continuation of this. I won't mark it as complete, because I know it's not, by any means, but if I come back to it, I'm sure I will with some wild idea about how Samus could shift from being a hotshot bounty hunter/mercenary saving the known universe on a semi-regular basis, to being a relatively low key local merc/demon hunter, saving the world, and potentially the galaxy by extension. Would probably be a character driven thing.**

 **Still, I hope everyone who reads this enjoys the little teaser that this is, and if I end up inspiring someone to continue with this premise, then awesome!**


End file.
